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Victoria Joan Pucino Jankowski
Victoria Joan Pucino Jankowski, 65, of Holly Springs died Sunday, Nov. 23, 2003 at Rex Nursing Care of Apex. Mrs. Jankowski was a wonderful and beautiful wife of 41 years and a devoted mother, and loved by all that knew her.
A funeral Mass was held Wednesday, Nov. 26, at St. Andrew the Apostle Catholic Church in Apex. Burial followed in Apex Cemetery.
She is survived by her husband, Joseph Louis Jankowski of the home; son, Mark Joseph Andrews, and his wife Karen, of Morrisville; grandchildren, David Ross Andrews and Wesley Eric Andrews; and brother, Richard Pucino of Newburgh, N.Y.
The family received friends Tuesday evening, Nov. 25, at Apex Funeral Home.
Those considering memorial contributions may make them to the American Cancer Society, 11 S. Boylan Ave., Raleigh, NC 27603.
Ann Carol Fernandez
Ann Carol Fernandez, 64, passed away Nov. 23, 2003. She was born Nov. 9, 1939, in New York, N.Y., to the late James and Louise Passierllo. She had been employed by Oxford University Press and Becton Dickinson Pharmaceutical Co. For the last 10 years, she had worked for RPS/FedEx as an administrative assistant to the terminal manager.
Ann is survived by her husband, Joseph A. Fernandez, to whom she was happily married for the past 14 years. She is also survived by stepchildren Jose L. Fernandez of Florida, Michael P. Fernandez and his wife Rosalinda of Georgia, Ramona Fernandez of Georgia, Candida Figueroa and her husband Louis of Connecticut; niece Linda Harlor and her husband Mark of Danville, Pa., and their children Evan and Katie; six grandchildren; and one great-grandchild; and her special pets, Perky and Paws.
The family received friends Tuesday evening, Nov. 25, at Brown-Wynne Funeral Home in Cary. The Mass of Christian burial was celebrated Wednesday afternoon, Nov. 26, at St. Michael the Archangel Catholic Church. Interment followed at Raleigh Memorial Park.
In lieu of flowers, memorial contributions may be made to the American Cancer Society, P.O. Box 27624, Raleigh, NC 27603.
John L. Hite
John L. Hite, 71, of Tucson, Ariz., formerly of Cary, died Thursday, Nov. 13, 2003, in his home in Tucson. He was born June 16, 1932 in Topeka, Kan., a son of Oral Lee Hite and Jessie Rebecca Bagley Hite. He was a U.S. Army veteran of the Korean conflict. He retired in 1994 as a radiation specialist from Allied Corporation in Moncure. Mr. Hite is survived by his wife, Susan Mirantz Hite of Tucson; daughter, Jacqueline Hite Bell of Wade, N.C.; son, Richard W. Hite of Cranston, R.I.; sister, Lucille Hite Dinwiddie of Denton, Texas; brother, Robert E. Hite of Topeka, Kan.; stepdaughter, Katherine E. Porter of Cary; stepsons, Raymond N. Porter III of Wilmington and Jonathan C. Porter of Cary; four grandchildren; and two step-grandchildren.
A celebration of life will be held Dec. 7 at the Community Church for Positive Living in Tucson. Arrangements are being handled by Heather Mortuary in Tucson.
Memorial contributions may be made to Community Church for Positive Living, 4241 W. Ina Road #111, Tucson, AZ 85741.
Donald 'Danny' Loosman
Donald "Danny" Loosman, 70, of Apex passed away unexpectedly Tuesday, Nov. 11, 2003, at Western Wake Medical Center. He was born April 27, 1933, in Syracuse, N.Y., and raised in Oneida, N.Y. He was active in the Boy Scouts of America and achieved the rank of Eagle Scout.
Danny served in the U.S. Marine Corps, including two tours in Vietnam. He retired in 1974 as a gunnery sergeant. Following his retirement from the Marines, Danny was an employee of Wise Foods Inc. for many years. He was an avid collector and could often be found at the flea market on Sundays.
Danny was preceded in death by his wife of 47 years, Marie Kent Loosman. He will be missed by his family: his daughters, Debby and her husband Hank West of Columbia, S.C., and Kathy Arthurs of Apex; his son, Donny and his wife Sharon Loosman of Cary; his granddaughters, Kelly Newton of Durham and Chelsea Arthurs of Apex; his grandsons, Sean West of Chapel Hill, Brad Arthurs of Apex and Brandon Loosman of Cary; and numerous other extended family members.
A funeral Mass was held Friday, Nov. 14, at St. Andrew The Apostle Catholic Church in Apex. The family received friends at the church prior to the service. Burial followed in the Apex Cemetery.
Memorial contributions may be made to Falcon Children's Home, P.O. Box 60, Falcon, NC 28342, or to a charity of one's choice. Apex Funeral Home handled arrangements.
Devin Leigh Smith
Devin Leigh Smith, 52, of Morrisville passed unto the Lord's kingdom Nov. 11, 2003, due to an extended illness. She was a loving spouse, exemplary parent and loyal friend who touched many lives. She lived a purposeful life filled with love, compassion, decency, acceptance, patience and great strength.
She is survived by a loving family and wonderful group of friends. Services and burial were to beheld in her home state of Texas. Apex Funeral Home handled local arrangements.
In lieu of flowers, memorial donations can be made to Hospice of Wake County, 1300 St. Mary's St., Raleigh, NC 27605.
Dr. Luther M. Talbert
Dr. Luther M. Talbert, a Cary infertility specialist and pioneer of in-vitro fertilization in North Carolina, died Nov. 17, 2003 at his home in Chapel Hill.
Dr. Talbert, 76, had been in poor health in recent months, his colleagues said.
Dr. Talbert, who is credited with the first successful in-vitro fertilization in North Carolina, was on the UNC-Chapel Hill Medical School faculty for 34 years. He established and directed the in-vitro fertilization program for a decade before retiring in 1993.
However, that was not the end of a long and fruitful career, one which he continued until he fell ill late last summer. Along with two other doctors, Dr. Talbert founded the North Carolina Center for Reproductive Medicine in Cary, renamed the Talbert Fertility Institute in his honor.
"It's a great loss not just to us, but also to patients with fertility problems, " said Dr. Sameh Toma, co-founder and medical director of the center. Toma worked under Dr. Talbert as a resident at UNC Medical Center, and was also advised by him.
"I attribute everything that I learned in OB/GYN to him, " Toma said. "Especially in fertility treatment and surgery. He's a great surgeon, and probably one of the best infertility doctors in the country."
Dr. Talbert was born in Virginia. After graduation from high school he enlisted in the U.S. Navy, where he served during World War II. He attended Emory and Henry College in Virginia and began his medical training at the University of Virginia at Charlottesville. He joined the faculty at UNC-Chapel Hill in 1958. During his time there, he was a clinician, researcher and teacher, instructing residents and fellows in all aspects of obstetrics and gynecology, including reproductive endocrinology and infertility, said Dr. Robert Riehl, laboratory director at the Talbert Fertility Institute.
"He's 20 years my senior, but as a student, if I wanted to know anything about the human ovary and things like that, I would go and read his papers that he published. Not being a basketball fan, I knew about UNC only through Luther Talbert, " Riehl said.
During his career, Dr. Talbert worked with Dr. Bob Edwards, one of the English doctors who pioneered the procedure that led to the 1978 birth of the first IVF baby in the world, Louise Brown of Great Britain, according to a recent story in the local publication Health & Living. Dr. Talbert also helped form the medical board to certify doctors in reproductive endocrinology and infertility, a subspecialty of the OB/GYN board certification. In fact, he was the first doctor to earn the subspecialty certification. He served as director of the UNC Division of Reproductive Endocrinology and Infertility as well as director for the In-Vitro Fertilization/Gift Program.
Even after he left UNC, "he was a wonderful supporter of the department and friend of the School of Medicine, " said Dr. Valerie Parisi, chairwoman of OB/GYN at the UNC School of Medicine, who added that Dr. Talbert supported clinical work and research through endowment funds such as the Nova Carta Fund.
Dr. Talbert published many academic writings and was well-known nationally and internationally, his colleagues said. He served in numerous positions of leadership in his profession, including as the director for the Division of Reproductive Endocrinology for the American Board of Obstetrics and Gynecology. He was awarded The Order of the Long Leaf Pine by Gov. Mike Easley for his commitment to women's health and his service to the state of North Carolina.
"The reason Luther and I got along so well, " Riehl said, "was, number one, he was just down-to-earth and non-ostentatious. He grew up in the mountains of Virginia and had very simple beginnings, similar to myself. We actually started in the in-vitro fertilization field about the same time, even though he was 20 years older than me. ... He was just the salt of the earth, the most honorable, altruistic and empathetic person I've ever known."
Those who worked with Dr. Talbert said he touched many lives. Attempting to put a number on the families who have been helped by his knowledge, compassion and expertise, "it's like the house that Jack built — if you include all the people he trained and the work they do ... it goes into the millions, " Riehl said.
On a personal level, "I will miss everything about him, " Toma said. "His leadership at our practice, his ability to shed light on difficult cases."
Nurse coordinator Judy Moretz said Dr. Talbert "opened so many people's hearts (helping them) to have babies. ... When he was working, he drove every day from Chapel Hill. He tried to leave about 4:30 every day to try to beat traffic and go home and ‘play with mama' — that's what he said all the time. His family was so important to him."
Dr. Talbert is survived by his wife and childhood sweetheart, Annie B. Talbert; and children John Talbert and wife Cheryl of Seattle, Luther Talbert and wife Hope of Bozeman, Mont., and Cay Bacon of Tampa, Fla. He is survived by grandchildren Ryan and Caytie of Seattle, Molly and Kristine of Bozeman, and Catherine and Luke of Tampa. He was preceded in death by his sister, Mary Elizabeth Neese, and is survived by brother John and sisters Eleanor, Eva and Becky, along with numerous nieces and nephews.
"You're asking a lot, " said his wife, when asked to describe her husband of 54 years. "I don't know how to answer that, except to say I wouldn't have wanted to marry anybody else. If I was 23, I'd do it all over again."
A graveside service will be conducted at 2 p.m. Friday, Nov. 21, in the Greenfield Baptist Church Cemetery in Meadowview, Va., by Dr. Robert Seymore.
A memorial service will be held at 5 p.m. Saturday, Nov. 22, at Binkley Baptist Church in Chapel Hill.
In lieu of flowers, donations can be made to The Luther Talbert Infertility Trust Fund, c/o South Trust Bank, Tryon Road, Cary, NC. Local arrangements were made with Walker's Funeral Home, Chapel Hill.
John 'Harvey' Lucas
John "Harvey" Lucas, 67, of Apex died Tuesday, Dec. 21, 2004.
He is survived by his wife, Marian Lucas; two sons, John Lucas of San Francisco and his wife, Sandy, and Luke Lucas of Chapel Hill; brother, Oliver Lucas of Plymouth; and granddaughter, Justine Lucas of San Francisco.
A memorial service was held Thursday, Dec. 23, at 11 a.m. at Greenwood Forest Baptist Church in Cary, with Pastor Randy Sherrin officiating. The family received friends immediately following the service.
In lieu of flowers, memorial contributions may be made to Greenwood Forest Baptist Church (Debt Reduction Fund), 110 S.E. Maynard Road, Cary, NC 27511.
Brown-Wynne Funeral Home assisted the family with arrangements.
